In 1992, Cornelia Whitner was sentenced to eight years in jail because her baby tested positive for cocaine at birth. Since then, a nationwide debate has raged about the legality of the South Carolina court’s actions that sentenced her. Should Whitner have received a criminal punishment for her drug addiction, a medical disease and not technically a crime? Or are her actions criminal because they amount to child endangerment, just as if she had given a child outside of her womb a drug of addiction like cocaine?

Very few people seem to agree on this issue. There are so many points to discuss that it’s almost difficult to know which one comes first. Here are just a few:

1. Drug addiction is a medical disease and not a moral failing. It’s also not a “crime” that anyone has ever stood trial for. While patients with an active drug addiction may have stood before a judge on counts of drug possession or for the behavior they chose while under the influence, the act of putting a drug into their body was never among the charges. That changed in this case – and only in potential other cases like this.
2. When a fetus becomes a child and therefore a person with rights. This is disputed in every state across the country, and it has a significant impact on this debate. If a child is not a child until after birth then there is no endangerment that the mother can inflict during pregnancy that is actionable. If a child becomes a child in the womb, at what point exactly and when does the mother become responsible for protecting that child above the dictates of her disease?
3. If a baby testing positive for a drug – and not necessarily being addicted to any substance – is a punishable offense, what else deserves prosecution? Should mothers who smoke cigarettes while they are pregnant receive judicial punishment? What about those who drink alcohol? At what point should they be prosecuted? After one cigarette or upon discovery of regular smoking? After just one drink or regular, daily drinking?
4. With the risk of prosecution comes the increased risk that mothers who know they are living with an addiction will not seek the help and care that they and their growing child needs. If living with an active addiction is a crime, and continuing to feed that addiction during pregnancy is a crime, then is it also a crime to risk pregnancy with unprotected sex during addiction? Will mothers even seek out the prenatal care that they and their child needs?
5. One statistic states that black women are 10 times as likely to be prosecuted for abusing drugs during pregnancy than are white women. Is this a racist issue or is it a true concern for all babies?

Though few would say that it’s okay to take any kind of drug or alcohol during pregnancy and continue to live with an active drug addiction without seeking treatment both before and after the baby is born, incarceration that takes that mother away from the child and limits access to drug treatment is good for no one.

What do you think?

It’s not just Whitney Houston’s daughter, Bobbi Kristina, who is making headlines due to alleged drug abuse
and potential addiction behavior. Now it’s Whitney herself who is reportedly beginning a drug rehab program. Like many celebrities, there is no admission from her camp that she is actually living with an active drug addiction that requires treatment, but that she is simply checking in so that she can maintain her long-term recovery and be proactive against relapse.

Whitney Houston’s rep says: “Whitney Houston is currently in an outpatient rehab program for drug and alcohol treatment. Whitney voluntarily entered the program to support her long-standing recovery process.”

When Outpatient Drug Addiction Treatment is a Good Idea

Whether or not Whitney has relapsed or if she is genuinely attempting to fight for a continued sobriety, an outpatient addiction treatment program is the perfect choice for her. Because she has already attended multiple inpatient treatment programs and learned how to remain clean and sober for the most part, an outpatient rehab can give her the refresher course she needs to stay in touch with the principles of sobriety, get a little guidance on specific issues that are causing her trouble, and have a supportive group of people who will hold her accountable for her actions for the duration of the program. For some patients, the constant possibility of a drug test is enough to help them avoid relapse and filling that sober time with personal therapy, group therapy, volunteer work, experiential therapy, alternative treatments and more can do nothing but bolster sobriety.

When Outpatient Drug Addiction Treatment is not a Good Idea

In general, it is not recommended that you attend outpatient drug addiction treatment if:

• It’s your first time in treatment after a long-term addiction.
• If you experience withdrawal symptoms when attempting to stop taking your drug of choice in addition to cravings and will require inpatient drug detox.
• If you have been living with an addiction without treatment for a long period of time, whether or not you have attended drug rehab in the past.
• If you are diagnosed with a co-occurring psychological, social, or behavioral disorder that makes the drug addiction more difficult to handle.
• If you have concerns that you will be unable to avoid relapse when you leave the program each day.

Though there are a number of situations in which outpatient addiction treatment is the only option – and it can be very effective – in most cases, a more intensive inpatient drug rehab program is recommended.

Contact us today to learn more about the addiction treatment programs available here at The Orchid.

Do you feel lucky? Well, do ya? When you’re fighting prescription drug addiction, you may feel that you’re anything but lucky. Happiness may seem to elude you, especially if you are dealing with chronic pain or chronic cravings after giving up Percocet addiction, Xanax addiction, and addiction to other prescription drugs. Many patients who end up back in painkiller rehab for a second or third time after their initial successful opiate detox report that they relapsed for one reason: they just weren’t happy and they thought a pill would be the answer.

Painkiller Abuse Does Not Make You Happy

Painkiller abuse just lead to painkiller addiction. Though you may no longer feel any worries or care after you take that first pill, the awakening of an addiction you fought so hard plus the increased tolerance, the bills, the broken promises to loved ones, the inability to do much of anything at all – that certainly is not going to make you happy. Soon you’ll find yourself right back where you started: miserable with a painkiller addiction.

Creating Your Own Happiness After Prescription Drug Addiction

You don’t have to be a psychologist to figure out that it’s your attitude that will make or break you in prescription drug addiction recovery. Your happiness is based solely upon how you choose to view the world – and yes, it absolutely is your choice. You cannot control what others do or say to you or what happens around you and while there will always be upsetting events in play, it is up to you how you react on a minute by minute basis and whether or not you choose to pull yourself up by your bootstraps and make it better when you recognize that you are unhappy – or choose to wallow.

Here are a few anti-wallowing tips to get you started.

• Get off the couch and get going. If you find that you spend most days laying around watching TV, sleeping, or feeling sorry for yourself, get up and get out of the house. Do anything. Take a walk. Take a drive. Bring a lunch. Get a cup of coffee. Go to the library. It doesn’t have to be an amazing odyssey, but you may just need a change of scenery.
• Watch something funny. No depressing dramas or deep documentaries when you’re already feeling down. Rent a funny movie or a season’s worth of your favorite sitcom and just relax.
• Schedule some “me” time. Plan a manicure or a pedicure or go get your hair done if you don’t already. If money is an issue, put a “Do Not Disturb” sign on the bathroom door and have a candlelit bubble bath.
• Organize your closet. Or your pantry or your hall closet – whatever happens to be perpetually overflowing with too much stuff. You may find that you feel better when your space is cleared out and in order.
• Cook something amazing. A project like baking bread from scratch or creating a truly amazing meal or even just a truly amazing dessert can change the mood for everyone in the house, including yourself. Go through some recipes, create a grocery list, and make it happen.

How do you make yourself happy in prescription drug addiction recovery?

Cocaine addiction kills the appetite, boosts the metabolism, and provides a false energy that makes you think that you don’t have to eat to survive. After cocaine addiction treatment, many in recovery have a hard time figuring out how to eat properly. Many women are upset when they gain weight in drug addiction recovery and find that they have low energy and feel rundown most of the time. Learning how to eat well and create a healthy diet can be a crucial part of your success in sobriety. Here are some tips to help you eat well, stay healthy, and get your metabolism back on track after cocaine addiction.

• Plan a week’s meals at once. If you take it meal by meal, you’ll get bored if not overwhelmed with the constant maintenance that comes with trying to find something healthy to eat every few hours. Instead, designate one day a week as meal planning day. Find healthy recipes, create a grocery list, and make as much as you can ahead of time. If you have extra, freeze pre-portioned single servings for next week.
• Take healthy snacks with you. If you work for longer than a few hours at a time or are on the go often, make sure that you are not at the mercy of restaurants for your nutrition. There are a lot of hidden fat and calories in restaurant food and, when you’re hungry, it’s harder to make positive choices. Bring a sandwich, a fiber bar, a piece of fruit or another healthy snack with you at all times and if you know you’ll be out for a meal regularly, (e.g., lunch at work each day) plan ahead and bring what you’ll need.
• Always eat breakfast. In order to get your metabolism going every day, you have to kickstart your body with breakfast. Avoid sugary pastries or high-fat breakfast meats and choose something small – a whole grain piece of toast, with half a piece of fruit and a hardboiled egg – just to let your body know that the day is starting.
• Workout. If you feel like all this healthy eating is thickening your waist line, don’t think for one second that starving yourself or relapsing on cocaine is the answer to slim down. Instead, kick up your efforts in the exercise department. If you’re out of shape, start by taking a daily 30 minute walk and increase the time or turn it into a jog-walk when you feel up to it. If there’s a sport you used to like, try to find an amateur league to play with or take a class to ease your way back in. Take a yoga class, start parking further away from the store, or take the stairs instead of the elevator – anything to increase your caloric burn and boost your metabolism in a healthy way.

What’s your favorite way to stay healthy in recovery and avoid relapse? Leave a comment and let us know!

Not only can you be addicted to love – like you can be addicted to almost anything – but new studies are comparing love addiction and the effects of a break-up to the effects of drug addiction and trying to ‘kick the habit’ with your drug of choice. Brain scans reveal that physiologically, the changes that occur when we heal from a broken heart are very similar to those who are healing after a physical and psychological dependence upon an addictive substance.

Brain Scans? How is a Breakup Similar to Drug Addiction Recovery?

A biological anthropologist at Rutgers University, Helen Fisher, took a look at the brain scans of college-age students when they were shown pictures of their ex. Apparently, the same parts of the brain lit up on the scan that were associated with cocaine and nicotine addiction, physical pain and distress.

In a way, it makes sense. Consider the actions deemed acceptable by those going through a serious break-up – would an objective person obsess over their ex, imagine that he or she wants them back and take measures to make that happen, or crave their attention by calling obsessively or showing up anywhere where the ex might appear? It’s the same kind of behavior displayed by someone fighting drug addiction: they, too, obsess over their drug of choice, rationalize why continued use won’t hurt them or is even good for them, and go out of their way – even making dangerous choices – to get more of the drug they crave.

The end result is a deep depression or anxiety and, in some cases, suicidal thoughts and ideations. The solution? Treatment.

Is There Treatment for Love Addiction?

No. But there is treatment for drug addiction and very often the two issues collide. Many who go through a breakup report heavy usage of alcohol, painkillers, heroin and other drugs designed to ‘numb’ the pain. They are so depressed that they see no reason to pull themselves out of their growing addiction despite all the problems they are causing themselves as a result. Drug addiction treatment can help those in this situation to get back on track, while also receiving counseling and grief treatment for the issues related to the breakup. This two-pronged approach to recovery can help the individual struggling to get back to a place of balance emotionally and further their progress in drug addiction treatment.

Drug Addiction Treatment Help for Women

If you are a woman who is struggling with a breakup as well as drug and alcohol addiction, an intensive treatment program can help you to process what happened and move forward in your life. Contact us at The Orchid today to learn how we can help you.